Virtue Ethics: An Introduction

In this fresh evaluation of Western ethics, noted philosopher Richard
Taylor argues that philosophy must return to the classical notion of
virtue as the basis of ethics. To ancient Greek and Roman philosophers,
ethics was chiefly the study of how individuals attain personal
excellence, or "virtue," defined as intellectual sophistication,
wisdom, strength of character, and creativity. With the ascendancy of
the Judeo-Christian ethic, says Taylor, this emphasis on pride of
personal worth was lost. Instead, philosophy became preoccupied with
defining right and wrong in terms of a divine lawgiver, and the concept
of virtue was debased to mean mere obedience to divine law. Even today,
in the absence of religious belief, modern thinkers unwittingly
continue this legacy by creating hairsplitting definitions of good and
evil.

Taylor points out that the ancients rightly understood the
ultimate concern of ethics to be the search for happiness, a concept
that seems to have eluded contemporary society despite unprecedented
prosperity and convenience. Extolling Aristotle's NICOMACHEAN ETHICS,
Taylor urges us to reread this brilliant and still relevant treatise,
especially its emphasis on an ethic of aspiration.